The invention described herein relates in general to the measurement and the analysis of physical and chemical properties of water and other fluids. More particularly, the subject invention is a system for the synchronous collection of selected fluid-related data and for management of these data, including storage and display of information.
Information as to the constituency and character of fluids, particularly water, is necessary in many applications such as for oceanographic and limnological research, for pollution control and monitoring, for industrial process and quality control, for acquaculture and fishery programs, and as an educational tool for predicted learning projects in schools. Present measurement and analytical devices are either too cumbersome, complex and expensive, or they are unsophisticated and limited in scope, lacking necessary accuracy and reliability. Heretofore, fluid measurement devices have not provided a simple, inexpensive, accurate, and self-contained means of acquiring and storing data of and within a fluid environment.
The present invention has overcome the disadvantages of prior fluid measurement and analytical methods and provides a highly versatile, accurate, self-calibrating and programmable system which may be used independent of external power and control requirements. The non-complex operation of the instant invention enables the collection of data by operators unskilled in the science of chemical and physical analysis. The subject invention stores accumulated information within an immersed Probe Control Unit during soundings. Data need not, therefore, be immediately transmitted to a surface of external reading device, but may be accussed later by use of a compatible Interpreter Unit, or data cassettes may be withdrawn and shipped to an information processing center away from the field.
Accordingly, it is an object of the subject invention to provide a simple, low-cost, multi-function, programmable, microcomputer-controlled fluids analysis system.
It is a further object of the subject invention to provide a self-contained, automated system to better meet the needs of all individuals and entities involved in the measurement and analysis of fluids.